Heal My Wounds
by Smex Lemur
Summary: Zuko finds Sokka in a slavehouse and decides to buy him, though he is not the young, energetic boy he knows. Will Zuko help him heal the inner wounds? ZuSo.
1. Save Me

_Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar._

_AN: First Avatar fic. Rated M for a reason xD. It seems a bit angsty, this first chapter, but I'll put some humour in it in later chapters. This first one was just needed for the plot xD._

**Chapter 1: Save me**

He woke up in a dark cell. His hands were tied together with a rope; he had been strapped from his clothes, his brown hair hanging lose, instead of the usual ponytail he wore. He vaguely remembered being captured by some Firebenders, though he couldn't be sure about it. His mind was blurry and his memory wasn't at its best, so he might have been mistaken about those benders. His entire body was smudged with dirt and mud, as if he had been dragged a long time- he felt like that as well.

And, worst of all, he was hungry.

His stomach was rumbling and he also actually needed to use the bathroom. After all those months of travelling with Aang, he never had been this hungry before. Deciding it was time to find out where he had been taken, he stood up, swaying slightly as he does so. He managed to lean against a very filthy and moist wall, until his legs were used to the feeling of standing again, and walked towards what seemed to be the entrance and exit of his small cell. He looked out the small hole of the door, probably only there to give the prisoners food, and saw other cells- all of those were open ones, bars in front of them, so you could see right through.

In one cell, the one right across from him, were two girls lying with their backs against each other, sleeping quietly and using each other as pillows. They were both naked as well and he blushed at the sight- he quickly looked away, to the next cell, where there were three boys locked up. Those three were naked as well (I think it's about time I stop establishing that everybody's naked)- two of them were kissing each other and he blushed even more at the sight. Was that allowed? Isn't that sinful? He quickly looked away and started to look for some guards instead- after all, he was a prisoner, so there must be a guard somewhere, right?

He saw one, standing near the only exit of the filthy chamber the cells were in and calls for him. "Hey! What's going on here? Where am I?" The guard briefly looked up, to see where the noise was coming from, before grinning slightly. He walked towards him, or, towards his cell really. As he was passing the two kissing boys, he hit the spear he was holding against the bars and told them to stop it. The two boys complied, reluctantly.

"So, you've finally woken up," the guard said, still grinning at him through the small hatch.

"Where am I?" he demanded. The guard yawned and took out a piece of paper from his pocket.

"Let's see. Cell number 18, slave-number: 56329. You're a slave, boy," the guard said, grinning at him. "But don't worry, I don't think you'll be here for long. A pretty boy like you should be easily sold to one of the older men," he quickly added. "What's your name, pretty boy?" he asked, putting his hand through the small hatch and grabbing his hair to pull him a bit forward. He screamed in agony and tried pulling back, but to no avail; the guard had a good hold on his hair.

"Sokka," he ground out, figuring it to be the easiest way to get rid of this guard. What was going on here? What did he mean with 'pretty boy'? Sokka didn't like it one bit and he was starting to get worried- where were Aang and Katara? Were they captured to? And what did he mean with 'slave'? As far as Sokka knew, slavery wasn't even allowed anymore.

"Well, Sokka," the guard said and let him go. Sokka immediately staggered backwards so the guard couldn't reach him anymore. Of course, in the long run, that was very useless- the guard has a key to the cell and could easily get him, if he would wish that. "You're in a slavehouse." Sokka blinked.

"But slavery is illegal!" he yelled- he was getting mad about the whole ordeal and, to be honest, he was also panicking. What happened? Damn his memory. The guard just laughed at him.

"It is, but so are a lot of other things and people do it anyway. Rich people from all over the world come here to buy one or more slaves and if you're lucky, you get a good owner. If you're not, you're screwed." His blood began to boil as the guard spoke about him as if he was an object, instead of a person. "Don't look so offended, it's nothing personal. You were caught by Firebenders, right?" He nodded, even though he still wasn't sure about it himself. But, fact was, he was in a cell, naked and alone. The only one who could give him any information was this guard. "When they have prisoners, they usually see if they can sell them to us, before they go to prison." The guard turned away from him and walked back to his original post, leaving the young boy alone with his thoughts.

All he could hope for now, was that someone would come and rescue him.

--

"Uncle, I still do not see the point in going here."

"Prince Zuko, you need money. Rich people go here and I happen to know someone who still owes me a favour." Zuko scowled at his uncle, who stood happily in front of the secret slavehouse. How his uncle knew about it, he did not know. Nor did he want to know. Personally, Zuko felt ashamed about showing his face in such a place, but his uncle was, to his dismay, right about it.

A while ago, his father had decided that he would cut off all of his finances, leaving Zuko with little money, a ship which needed maintenance, and a crew, who wanted their pay checks. His reason: Zuko still hadn't captured the Avatar and he was getting tired of sending him money. The young prince knew it was only a matter of time before he would get his hands on the Avatar, but until that time came, he still needed the money to pay for everything. Travelling was an expensive hobby.

"Well, shall we go inside?" Zuko nodded and followed his uncle. The building was relatively small- it stood in the middle of a prosperous Earth city, one that had been taken over by the Fire Country long ago, giving the people of Xiang two choices; either they would stay low and obey Fire and they could go on with their lives, or they would oppose, lose and get killed. Even though Earth was a brave land, they chose the first option. It also allowed the buying and selling of slaves to continue, as most purchasers actually came from the Fire Nation.

However, as they both entered the slavehouse, Zuko immediately noticed it had an underground basement and probably led to where the slaves were being held. He didn't think slaves were really necessary- servants were as good as slaves, were they not? You had to pay for slaves as well and, as far as Zuko had heard, slaves were worth a fair amount of money as well, so it didn't really matter when it came to paying for them. He decided to question his uncle about this fact, being the curious person that he was.

"Uncle, why are they still selling slaves? Servants are practically the same, right?" He could tell the old man's face immediately darkened.

"Yes, they are, but there are major differences. For one, slaves must do whatever their master tells them to do. If they don't, they must face punishment from said master. Servants can refuse, but they'll get fired. That's, of course, a worst case scenario," Zuko stayed silent as his uncle spoke. They had to wait for someone to come anyway, so they had the time. "Secondly, most people purchase a slave for… things other than bringing tea," Zuko blinked once, not understanding.

Then it dawned on him.

"You mean, sex?" he asked. His uncle nodded.

"Indeed. Most slaves here are very young still and there are a lot of… sick people out there, who like that," Zuko looked horrified. "It's a serious thing and personally, I'd like to see it stop, but there are few things we can do about it. Whenever Fire Country take prisoners, they first bring them here to see if they can be sold to the slavehouse, before they are actually taken to prison. They will be naked in a cell and people can even 'test' them for one night, before they actually purchase one. Most slaves end up dead after one year of being with their master- either mentally or physically."

"I'll stop this once I'm king," Zuko said, determined, obviously angry by the way his father actually allowed this. Taking prisoners is one thing, but actually turning them into a- a sexslave is ten times worse than that. The old man smiled at his nephew proudly, before the owner of the slavehouse came up to them, a very fake grin on his face.

"How can I help you today? We have just gotten some new slaves in only two days ago and one of them is a real pretty boy. Luckily you came early, sir, I'm sure he's gone within the next hour!"

"No, we are actually looking for someone," Iroh said, forcing a smile on his face. However, the man wasn't listen and already walked towards the stairs leading to the basement.

"If you're looking for someone, you're at the right address," he called out to them. Zuko refrained from lashing out at the man and, together with his uncle, followed him downstairs to the most gruesome place he had ever seen- it was filthy and smelled and… well, let's just say he never wanted to be in the shoes of those slaves. Not that they were wearing any shoes at that time- in fact, they weren't wearing anything at all. Zuko, even though he tried to keep his stoic posture, blushed slightly at the naked boys and girls sitting in the cell. "Don't mind these, they're not half as good as the one in the last cell. Most slaves are being put together in cells, but the really exquisite ones will be put alone. Wait till you see him, I had to keep the guards away from him, though I believe one man got to him." The man grinned evilly at Zuko and Iroh, making the first one shudder.

"Actually, Mr. Mao, we're looking for-"

"Boy!" the man- Mao- yelled through the door as he unlocked it, revealing a naked, shivering boy on the floor. Zuko's eyes widened briefly- it was the Watertribe- boy. Even though he was covered in dirt and he had his hair loose- he could still recognise the tanned skin and ice-blue eyes. For a moment, Zuko didn't know what to think- on the one hand, he felt like leaving the Water-Boy in the cell, leaving him to die there, but then he remembered what his Uncle had told him about the slaves and their… duties. Zuko shuddered. Even though they were enemies, he still felt a strange connection, probably because he knew him, and couldn't possibly leave him there. He was still hesitant though- the prince had some money, savings, for when he was in trouble, but should he use it on him? "We keep the exquisite ones in this cell, because their minds will be easily broken, so it will be easier for the masters to handle them better. Some tend to fight and this one isn't an exception," Mao grinned sadistically at the pair of them and all of Zuko's hesitance faded away as he saw his face and the look the boy on the floor had. His eyes looked dead.

"I'll buy him," he said. His uncle Iroh looked up at him, questioningly, but didn't say anything about it. He grabbed a small bag out of his pocket and handed it to the man. "Will this be enough?" Mao looked in it, his eyes widening briefly, before his grin reappeared again.

"You're in luck today, mister…"

"Call me Lian," Zuko said, not wanting to reveal his true name, if the creepy man didn't know him.

"Mister Lian," Mao nods. "He's all yours." Iroh took this opportunity to talk to Mao, as Zuko walked inside the cell, grabbing Sokka by the arm and pulling him up to his feet. The Watertribe boy looks at him wearily, a faint hint of recognition in his eyes.

"Z-Zuko? What are you doing here?" He asks him, obviously too broken to even defend himself, to even know that Zuko was actually his enemy.

"I bought you, you're coming with me," Zuko said coldly, though shocked by the way the boy behaved- he was usually very spirited and cheerful and energetic; they had gotten to him and somehow, Zuko felt hurt because of that. "Do you have some clothes he can wear?" Zuko called out to Mao, who was still speaking with Iroh. The creepy man handed him a ragged pants and shirt and Zuko helped Sokka getting dressed- the boy was weak and couldn't stand on his own. "Uncle, let's go. Do you have any information on the whereabouts of your friend?" The prince finally said, as he supported Sokka.

"Yup, but I think we should take him back to the ship first. If you want, I could go by myself," his Uncle said, clearly amused by the way Zuko took care of this boy. Of course, Iroh had recognised him as well and had already suspected his nephew to buy him, but still, it came as quite a shock to see him helping the boy, guiding him, dressing him. Then again, the Watertribe-boy looked rather weakened and, from what Iroh could tell, he had been raped by one of the guards. Iroh wouldn't be surprised if that really had been the case and he himself felt his blood boil at the thought- nobody deserved such a thing, enemy or not.

"If you wouldn't mind going by yourself," Zuko said, nodding. "I have to take care of some things on the ship anyway." Iroh nodded and let his nephew pass, occasionally helping him getting the young boy to move and walk. When Zuko placed Sokka on his own bed, he immediately passed out.

--

Sokka woke up the next morning and groaned. His head hurt like hell and he vaguely wondered if the whole thing had been just a terrible nightmare. Then he felt his bruised ass and quickly withdrew that small hope; it had been real. He opened his eyes, blinking as the light of fire hurt his eyes. He waited a moment for his eyes to adjust and then looked around, only to find the crest of the Fire Nation all over the place and the prince himself sleeping on a soft chair.

He blinked and wondered why he was there. Had Zuko bought him? He didn't remember anything, only his arrival and… unfortunately, the day after that. But his mind was blank after that, so he had no idea what he was doing on the ship of his greatest enemy and perhaps one of the persons he hated the most.

Though, Zuko didn't look so mean as he lay there, sleeping peacefully on the chair. Sokka quickly shook that thought out of his head; Zuko was after Aang. Therefore, they were enemies, no matter how he looked whenever he was asleep. After all, a dragon doesn't do anything in his sleep either, does he? Even though Sokka knew he had to get out of there, he simply didn't have the energy, nor will, to do so. He was tired, he was hurting- both mentally and physically- and he didn't want to; what was the point? He was ashamed of himself, how could he go back to his village or to his sister knowing that he had been… he had been…

He couldn't even think about it.

He just focused on the problem at hand; Zuko and what he was supposed to do now. Maybe he should just stay there and wait for him to wake up and explain everything. Unless Zuko was like those guards…

No, not even he would do such a thing.

"You're awake," a voice suddenly stated. Thank you, Captain Obvious. Sokka looked up to Zuko, who was looking at him, expressionless. The Watertribe-boy looks back at him, face as blank as his is- somehow, it bothers Zuko that he has such an expression, but he decided that it was nothing and diminished the thought. "You're my slave now," he continued, a smug look on his face. To his surprise, Sokka didn't even yell at him, but instead just looked away.

"Congratulations."

"Aren't you-"

"Is there anything else you want to say, or do you just want to rub it into my face? Don't you think you Firebenders have done enough to my life as it is?" He all but yells at Zuko, who's eyes flinch briefly at the hurt tone of his voice, but regains his composure after a second.

"Slave, you don't talk to your master like that," he says, walking up to the bed. "This time, I will let it slip since you are still recovering from that place, but next time, you will be punished. And trust me, you don't want that." Sokka looked away from him again. "You'll be staying in my room for the time being, as there is only room left with the crew and I don't think you'll want to sleep there. And," he adds. "My uncle snores and I don't want my slave to change into an insomniac." This brought forth a flicker of emotion in Sokka's dead eyes, but it was gone immediately.

"We wouldn't want that," he said, sarcastically.

"Indeed," Zuko said. "There are certain rules I want you to obey," he continued, looking intently at Sokka. "First of all, you will have breakfast with me every morning. Secondly," he paused, hesitantly. "I will treat you well, if you treat me with respect. That means that you will obey me and I won't make you do anything unreasonable." Zuko didn't really like the idea of having a slave, but he wasn't about to waste his money either, so he'd make use of the Watertribe-boy. "Thirdly, if you try to escape even once, I will have you punished as well. If you obey these rules, everything will be fine. Maybe after some time, I will give you some privileges, if I trust you enough and if you are loyal enough." Sokka nodded. "And, finally, what is your name, Watertribe-boy?"

"…Sokka." He looked up at Zuko and sees him nod.

"Very well, Sokka."

--

_AN: Ok, so what do you think? O.o This just popped into my head and I wrote it down immediately. I personally quite like it, so far, so I'm wondering if I should continue this or not. I am surprised that I like the show Avatar though, because it is more of a… childlike anime and, to be frank, it's not one of my favourites, though I am completely in love with Zuko and I think Sokka would be perfect for him, somehow xD. _

_Anyway, review, if you will :3_


	2. Protect Me

_Disclaimer: Don't own it. _

**Chapter 2: Protect Me**

The next month passed by in a blur to Sokka; Zuko had brought in a comfortable bed for Sokka to sleep in and, to be honest, he felt like he was being treated fairly reasonable, just as Zuko had told him. Of course, he still was recovering from shock, but Zuko made sure to keep his mind occupied with very small chores for him to do- like bringing him and his uncle tea, cleaning the room for him, keeping him company and doing other useless little things that nobody really cared about.

Sokka was beginning to think that Zuko was just humouring him.

And yet, the way he was being treated was not entirely bad. Zuko didn't really treat him with respect, but with a certain amount of kindness. Besides, the fact that he hadn't asked Sokka once about Aang, surprised him greatly as well. Even though Sokka couldn't even tell him anything- he didn't remember that day, when he was captured, and he had no idea where his sister and Aang were at that point. Zuko also fed him well and always made sure he didn't overwork himself with cleaning. Zuko talked to him, though sometimes with a hint of annoyance whenever he was angry- he didn't have a lot of tolerance, but Sokka found that he didn't really care about that. After all, Zuko never vented his anger on a person, but usually (as Sokka experienced), through training and sometimes, the wall was his victim.

The crew was friendly towards him as well, even though they were Firebenders- he had even found a man, maybe five years older than he was himself, to talk with, occasionally when Zuko would let him walk around freely.

Besides the crew, he also found that Zuko's uncle, Iroh, was a very friendly man and Sokka held a certain amount of respect for the older man. He was practically the only one who treated Sokka like he was a human (not that Zuko treated him badly, but he looked down on him, more or less) and often invited him to play a game of chess or drink some tea with him. Iroh always talked to him, telling stories about the days where he still fought in wars and even stories about a younger Zuko, much to his annoyance. Sokka enjoyed the latter the most, obviously.

All in all, it wasn't really bad being there. It could've been worse, like the guard on his first day had said. The food was reasonably good, he was being treated fairly well and he hardly had to work. And he didn't have to do anything… against his will.

Though, he missed his friend and sister. He kept wondering on how they were doing; Zuko wouldn't tell him anything, said that it was private and that he did not have a right to know. Sokka, in return, became mad at Zuko and snapped at him, telling him that he, in fact, did have a right to know about it, since he was the bloody Avatar's friend and since his sister was travelling with him. He got punished for that and he immediately never talked to Zuko freely, unless he asked him something.

This to the great annoyance of Zuko.

After a couple of days of spending with the boy, he finally opened up a bit more to him. Not that Zuko really cared about him, but he hated seeing him in pain like that; his eyes cold and dead from only those two days spending at that place and he liked the boy's consistent babbling about food, his village or stories about what he and the Avatar had been through, even though it sometimes was annoying. He finally started to talk again, bouncing through the whole ship and actually bringing some life to the place- everybody honestly liked him, even Iroh, who was very friendly towards him.

But, then he started to demand for information about the Avatar and his sister. Zuko didn't want to tell him, because he didn't think it was necessary for him to know- after all, he was a slave and he just needed to obey. It wasn't like he could return to them anyway, for now. So, he had to punish him for lashing out like that, even though he honestly didn't want to. After that, Sokka just became quiet and didn't talk to him anymore.

Zuko had been thinking about releasing him, several times even, but decided against it. Although he didn't want to admit it, not even to himself, he kind of liked the company. It was certainly better than having breakfast by himself and having no one to talk to him, as if they were both on an equal status. Not that Sokka was his equal, but he acted that way and Zuko didn't really mind that. The prince had never had a… friend, to play with, to talk to when he was little, so he might have considered Sokka becoming a friend, on some level. But then again, Sokka was only near him, because he was his slave- not his friend. If it was up to him, he would leave this instant never to look back again.

Zuko realised that very well.

And maybe that was also why he kept his distance from the boy; pushing him away as he kept squirming through the walls he had built around his heart, without knowing it. Zuko just had to keep him at a distance- he couldn't be friends with his enemy, nor with a slave. There was just no way that could possibly happen.

--

"Prince Zuko, we'll be stopping briefly at a harbour nearby, to refill supplies," Sokka heard Iroh say, as they were standing on the bridge. "We should be able to collect some information about the Avatar as well." Sokka looked up briefly, with a hint of hope in his eyes, but it was soon dimmed with one glare from Zuko, which reminded him of the lashes he had received after yelling at him. He didn't want to have that again; that pain. It was almost as painful as… as…

He shook his head to take his mind off of that. It wasn't as painful- it was ten times les painful, in fact.

"Good. I'd like to take a walk when we get there," Zuko replied. "Sokka will accompany me." Iroh nodded cheerfully and Sokka just scowled at his master, even though he didn't really mean it. He would never admit it, but he liked it whenever they would go on walks.

Just like the others, this one was in a peaceful and comfortable silence. Usually, Sokka would talk everybody's ear off, but since Zuko had specifically told him that, if he would talk whenever he wasn't allowed to talk, he'd sew his mouth shut. On which Sokka had replied 'I didn't know you could sow', which had earned him a smack, though not a hard one. That certainly had pleased Zuko, though, and it had made Sokka laugh, which was a sound he wanted to hear more often.

They walked together, Zuko alert for any possible enemies and Sokka just strolling casually over the dirt path- he wasn't really afraid of any thieves or kidnappers when he had Zuko with him. After all, he was the prince and even though he was reluctant to admit it, Zuko was a good warrior.

Suddenly, even though it was so quiet in the forest and you could hear anybody approach, some men jumped at them. They came from the thick tree branches of the forest, which gave them enough cover to hide them well and even Zuko was surprised as he saw maybe twenty men jumping at him and Sokka.

His response was immediate; before they reached the ground, Zuko had already taken out two of the men by using his fire. Sokka was fighting on his own, against one man, actually, and was winning the punching match. The young boy jumped right on top of the grown man and they both fell backwards, Sokka landing a few punches on the way. Right when they hit the ground, the man was already unconscious and Sokka stood triumphantly, ready for the next bastard who would cross his path. Unfortunately for him though, one men actually stood behind him and was about to strike with his sword, determined to kill the young boy. Zuko didn't hesitate and used his fire to knock the guy out, leaving Sokka blinking, before he looked back and said a hasty 'thank you' towards Zuko at the sight of a burned and unconscious man lying behind him, before another one headed his way.

The battle went on for quite some time, before Zuko was finally slashed by one of the man standing behind him as he had just knocked out another one. Sokka, who had just punched another guy unconscious, saw this and immediately jumped on top of the man who had cut his master and started to pull on his hair and biting his shoulder- the man cried out in agony and tried his best to take out the young boy on his back, but couldn't. Sokka quickly jumped off of him, grabbed a big rock and threw it on the other man's head, knocking the tall man unconscious. That was the last one of their attackers and Sokka immediately hurried over to where Zuko lay, a pool of blood surrounding him from the big wound.

For a moment, Sokka hesitated about what he had to do now- should he bring Zuko back and live without his freedom, or should he run and leave Zuko behind? Then he thought about what Zuko had done for him at the slavehouse. He had paid a lot of money for him, just so he wouldn't fall into the hands of some perverted old man. Besides, how could he leave a dying person? It would just go against his nature.

"Come on, let's get you back to the ship," Sokka said, as he carried the prince (bridal-style, might I add) back to where they had come from- leaving the men who had attacked them behind. Zuko moaned something, his eyes fluttering open and a confused look on his face, before he finally passed out from the loss of blood.

--

He woke up in his own bed, still dizzy and completely covered in bandages. He couldn't remember much from before he passed out- only that he was fighting, a guy hit him from behind and he vaguely remembered someone carrying him. Had that been Sokka? Even though he was his slave, he had every chance of escaping right there and then and yet, he hadn't done it. If it really had been Sokka, that is.

"Finally, you're up," a voice said. Zuko looked at where the voice came from and saw Sokka standing in the doorframe, grinning at him. Zuko still had that confused look on his face. "Pf, and you call yourself a warrior, you couldn't even handle a bunch of thieves on your own," the boy continued, walking towards the bed and pulling a chair in front of it, so he could talk to his master. Zuko couldn't help but grin back at him- he had finally gotten back his insolence.

"You're one to talk, I saved your ass three times there," he replied. Sokka just huffed at him. "Why didn't you run away?" Sokka looked as if he was contemplating that question for a moment.

"Yeah, I could've done that, huh? Well, I guess it was because I couldn't leave you there, since you helped me get out of that slavehouse," Sokka blushed slightly. "I mean, I could've ended much worse. You should've seen some of the creeps that go there- I mean, I was only there for two days, but… well, let's just say I'm glad you bought me," he gave another embarrassed grin at the prince, who nodded in understanding.

"What… kind of people came by?" Zuko's face grew darker as he asked the next question, "That man told us that they even allowed people to 'test' their… slaves. Did they do that with you?" Sokka looked away, embarrassed and hurt. Zuko immediately knew the answer when he saw the look on Sokka's face.

"I'd… rather not talk about that. Besides, breakfast's ready, so I'll get some for you. I don't think you can stand up with that wound," he suddenly said, in order to change the topic. He honestly did not want to talk about that- it was embarrassing and painful to remember and Zuko didn't need to know. He'd probably just laugh at him behind his back about it, considering the fact that he was his master, prince and still somewhat of a bastard.

"Sokka," Zuko suddenly said, stopping the boy as he was about to exit the room to get him something to eat. "Thanks. For not abandoning me." Sokka turned back and grinned at him again.

"Anytime."

--

The next few days went very well between the prince and Sokka; they were luckily back at sea and Sokka supposed that they had found information on the whereabouts of the Avatar, which was a good thing, because he at least knew that they were alive and safe. Or, at least alive.

He was surprised that they hadn't looked for him though- or maybe they did, but did not succeed. In any case, Sokka had been missing for over a month and he would understand it if they had forsaken their search for him and would just continue with their mission; help Aang. Which was what Sokka still intended to do- just because he was Zuko's slave, did not mean that he could abandon his friend and sister. He'd help them, even if he could only do small things, like perhaps warn them or put Zuko on the wrong track. As long as Zuko wouldn't reach them, everything would be alright.

On the other hand, Sokka felt that he was becoming more and more adjusted to his new life. Zuko and he talked a lot, even though Sokka was usually the one to tell all sorts of stories to Zuko and, surprisingly enough, the prince listened to them, sometimes commenting and sometimes just keeping his mouth shut. Zuko told tales to Sokka as well- about the Fire Nation mostly, but Sokka was still interested in it, even though he hated the Fire.

Both of them actually enjoyed each other's company, especially after saving each other's asses during the time they had been attacked. They trusted and even though they would absolutely never admit it, they liked each other. Sokka had never thought he could ever like a Firebender, much less a direct enemy of Aang, but he did after the month they spent together. They didn't have a lot in common, that was for sure, and yet they could spend hours in each other's company, just talking or sometimes even training together. Sokka often learned some basic fighting steps from Zuko and they mostly just held practice matches, though he never played really fair. Whenever Sokka was about to win, he'd just start to use his fire since Zuko is a very bad loser and doesn't like to lose from his slaves in front of his crew. Sokka then yells that he's a cheater and points at him accusingly, on which Zuko then replies that everything is fair in love and war.

Then Sokka says that there is neither love nor war between them, which somehow disappoints Zuko. At that time, he simply figured that it was because he liked fighting and thought it was because of the latter that he was disappointed- too bad Zuko had never understood love.

One week after the attack, Zuko and Sokka were standing outside, looking at the ocean, waiting for land to come in sight. They needed to refill some things again, which they weren't able to find at the last harbour, so they needed to stop again. Sokka didn't really mind- he liked land more than he liked being at sea. The same went for Zuko.

"Prince Zuko, might I have a word with you?" Iroh suddenly came up to the pair of them and pulled Zuko away from Sokka. Said boy just stared at the two retreating persons, who finally stopped and started to talk. After a moment or two, he saw steam coming out of Zuko's ears and, before yelling a loud 'what!' he stomped off towards his room, leaving a worried Iroh. For a moment, Sokka was hesitating as to whether or not he should follow him, but a nod from Iroh did the trick, so he hurried after him.

When Sokka entered the room, he saw Zuko sitting on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees and his head leaning on his hands. The prince briefly looked up to see who had entered his room and then looked down again. The tribesman wondered what he should do next, but before he could say anything or ask something, Zuko started speaking.

"Father says that I need to find the Avatar in one month," the prince stated. Sokka blinked. "I guess you don't know yet? I was banished and, in order to be able to get back to my country, I need to capture the Avatar. Father is getting impatient and wants me to get him within a month's time." Sokka looked at him with a certain amount of pity in his eyes. "If I haven't found him by then, I can never return to my country. I'll lose my crew, my ship, everything. I suppose you don't know where he's either?" Sokka shakes his head.

"No, I don't even remember where we were the day I was captured," he replies. "But," he adds. "I don't know if I would tell you, even if I knew." Zuko looked up briefly, an emotion flicking through his eyes which Sokka couldn't identify.

"I guess the Avatar has loyal friends, then." Sokka nods.

"Why don't you join Aan- I mean, the Avatar then? If he ends the war, I'm sure you'll be able to go back to your country." Zuko smiled sadly.

"But I wouldn't have regained my country. And my people would thing that I abandoned them- they wouldn't understand. I'd never get respect if I do that."

"And you think capturing the world's only hope _will _get you respect?" Sokka asked, angry. Zuko looks at him again.

"Know your place, slave," he snaps, his yellow eyes narrowing at the boy he would almost call his friend. Sokka looked even more angry at that.

"Oh, so now I'm back to slave? Damn Zuko, I'm just trying to help you!"

"Well, maybe I don't need a slave's help," he hissed right back at him. Zuko saw that he had hurt the boy's feelings, but he didn't really care at that point- he wouldn't understand anyway.

"You know, I should've just left you there," Sokka said sadly. "To think that I actually thought we could be friends. Maybe it was just a stupid though." With that, Sokka left the room, leaving a confused prince. Confused, because he was now more worried about Sokka than he was worried about capturing the Avatar.


	3. Heal Me

_Disclaimer: Don't own it. _

_AN: Thank you for the reviews :3 Not much action in this chapter. Just some improvement on their feelings, especially Zuko's. I somehow really like writing him, though I'm not sure if I do a good job at it. I have only seen the 'Water' part of Avatar, so I have no idea if anything has changed about him. _

_It's a shame the only twenty chapters aired here- well, so far that is. They just started over again, so I am hoping on the next season of Avatar xD _

_Anyway, I hope you enjoy this and leave a review :3_

**Heal Me**

The next couple of days passed by slowly for both Zuko and Sokka. Sokka tried his best to avoid the Prince and Zuko tried his best to shoot venomous insults to the tribesman in order to cut slightly into his pride. And maybe also to make Sokka respond to him, since the boy had decided to only say 'yes, master', emphasizing the last word as much as possible. He never reacted to the insults and just walked away from the prince, leaving him each time confused. Zuko felt bad about that day, that he had lashed out at Sokka in that manner, but he didn't know what to do.

Apologise?

That was simply absurd. Zuko did not apologise to anyone and certainly not a peasant from a Watertribe, who probably couldn't even read properly. Though a small part of him did acknowledge what he had said- that he should join the Avatar, instead of constantly searching for him, endlessly trying to get information from habitants of villages and having no home to return to after a hard day of work. If he would join the Avatar…

He shook his head as he was lying in his bed, musing over the last couple of days and occasionally looking at Sokka, who was sleeping peacefully on the bed on the other side of his room. No. That was not an option. He wouldn't regain his honour if he did that, nor would he get the respect he deserved.

"_Oh, and you think capturing the world's only hope _will _get you respect?"_

Somewhere, he did have a point. Though it wasn't allowed, he knew a lot of inhabitants of the Fire Nation did want peace and did want the Avatar to stop the meaningless war- was it possible that Sokka knew what he was talking about? Zuko found it hard to imagine that; after all, he had found him naked in a cell, raped and abandoned and he was only a mere peasant. He didn't have a high status, he lived in an igloo for God's sake. How could Zuko even consider his words?

But then again… there were certain aspects of Sokka which made the young prince jealous. Even though he actually wasn't a bender, he could hold his own in a fight, which he had proved rather well when those thieves had attacked them. Though not as much as the present, he knew the young boy could smile so carefree, smile so gentle and peaceful as if he never had experienced any form of pain- Zuko knew, of course, that he had experienced painful things. Somewhere, the prince wanted to protect that gentleness from anything, though he knew it was stupid- Sokka wasn't some damsel in distress, wishing to be saved by the Prince Charming on a white horse. Sokka wasn't a damsel and Zuko certainly was no Prince Charming.

And when did he have such thoughts about protecting the boy?

Shrugging that thought away, he continued to muse about those positive points the tribesman had. Even though it wasn't really evident through most of his actions, Sokka was intelligent. Zuko remembered with a smug grin on his face how the tribesman had talked himself, his sister and the Avatar out of the hands of those pirates when they had captured them. If it hadn't been for that trick, Zuko certainly would've captured the Avatar a long time ago. Then again, those pirates weren't the brightest people around, of course, but it was rather amusing thinking back about it.

Which brought him to another point- what was he to do now? He only had a month- even less- left. He would never capture the little brat and he couldn't count on Sokka either. Perhaps it was easier to join the Avatar- it certainly was better than to be banished forever and he had a bigger chance on gaining his country back. Frankly, Zuko wasn't even interested in the war- he thought that having one country was plenty and had no intention of ever subduing other Nations, who didn't even want to be ruled by him. All he wanted was a home.

He glanced back at the boy, his face illuminated by the small torch hanging near the door- his face held a frown and he seemed anything but peaceful. He must have had a nightmare, Zuko figured, since he usually slept very calmly. The prince just shrugged and turned around.

If he had a nightmare, it wasn't of any concern to him. After all, he was only a slave- not a friend.

--

Things continued to stay like that for another good week, before Zuko finally got sick of the way they both were behaving. To be honest, he missed the idiot. Even though they argued a lot, even though they were each other's complete opposites and even though they differed in status, strength and probably everything else- Zuko still missed him. He never would admit it to the other boy, of course, but he missed his unstoppable chattering and the way he spoke up to Zuko, unlike everyone else who simply just agreed with him, even though he was wrong about something.

That day, it was just another peaceful day on the ship. Zuko stood outside, looking ahead at the horizon, which never seemed to end. His hands were on his back as he looked on, not being disturbed by anyone. Nobody dared to either- they knew how they prince was. He was thinking everything through and, if anyone dared to disturb him at that time, they would pay dearly for it.

Even Sokka knew this little fact and so he played chess with Iroh, who seemed to be worried about his nephew. Over the past few days, he had become quieter and so was Sokka, who refused to make even so much as eye contact with his young nephew. Iroh knew he was mad at his father for giving him a time limit, mad, but not like this. He hadn't even vented his anger on one of the crewmembers, which he usually did whenever he was mad. No, what his nephew was experiencing now was perhaps a feeling of confusion- maybe loneliness?

Iroh usually was quite good at observing people and he could read his nephew like an open book- clearly something was bothering him more than just the Avatar and Iroh had a feeling Sokka had something to do with it. Not that he blamed him, of course, since he knew how the prince could act like a spoiled child whenever something didn't go his way.

"I believe it's checkmate," Iroh said, placing his horse so Sokka's king couldn't move anymore. The tribesman scowled- again he was beaten by the old man.

"Sokka. I wish to speak to you for a moment." The two of them looked up from the ground to see Zuko standing near the railing of the ship. Apparently, he was done thinking. Iroh eyed him with curiosity as Sokka stood up.

"Yes, master," he replied, strolling slowly to his 'master'. He still refused to say anything else to him, even though Zuko had called him by his name, instead of referring him to 'slave', like he had done the last couple of days. This hadn't gone unnoticed by Iroh, of course, and he smiled slightly to himself.

"I have thought a lot about what you said," Zuko started, uncomfortably. He wasn't used to admitting his faults- in fact, he had almost never done that, with the exception of a few rare occasions. Sokka looked at him, curiosity getting the better of him, though he was still made at the prince.

"I thought you didn't want the help of a slave," he said, though with not so much venom in his tone as he had intended.

"Well- you see- I mean. Fuck, I'm not used to this!" Zuko suddenly exclaimed, scratching his head as he did so. Sokka just blinked. "Look, I- I'm sorry I said those things. And I have thought about what you said and I have decided that I will cease my search for the Avatar and will join him. Though there are… still complications left, I will try," he said finally, looking at Sokka determined. For a moment, Zuko felt fear running through his body- that maybe he was too late and that Sokka had decided to just forget about everything, but then the tribesman just grinned at him- the same carefree grin.

"Thank God!" Zuko blinked once, confused. "I mean, I like your uncle, I really do, but I was getting so tired of drinking tea _all day long_." Zuko laughed at that, looking at his uncle who was confused by the way his nephew was laughing _at _him. "So, the great Zuko _can _laugh?" Sokka said, grinning at him. The prince immediately ceased with laughing and replaced it with a scowl. "You should do it more often, you look better when you do," the tribesman continued, nudging the other's ribs, smiling gently up at him. His eyes glistened in the bright daylight, becoming as blue as the ocean they were sailing on, and Zuko didn't see one hint of malice, sarcasm of venom in them. He wasn't used to such eyes.

It was one of the few times in his life, Zuko was speechless.

--

He was lying on his bed again, something he always did when he was confused about something, or needed to think in private, about personal things. Not that he was now by himself- Sokka was sleeping in his bed, but Zuko didn't really mind that. It didn't happen often, of course, because Zuko almost never thought about anything else besides the Avatar, he didn't need to think about private things, such as his probably new found friend. Actually, his only friend.

He still didn't know exactly if they were friends. His uncle Iroh had once said that friendship consists of trust and caring for each other. Did he trust Sokka? Yes, for the most part he did. Though he could never forget the fact that he was a friend of the Avatar (which, he reminded himself, didn't play a big part anymore, since they were teaming up), he trusted him. He couldn't say he trusted him with his life or something sappy like that, but more or less that Sokka wouldn't betray him, because betrayal wasn't like him. He also trusted him with walking freely around deck and sometimes even in the harbours, provided he would stay in the neighbourhood- he never had tried to escape once. He trusted him with some of his thoughts, even some of his weaknesses- even with his past.

Did he care for Sokka? He had no idea. What was caring for someone else? He certainly didn't care for his sister, nor did he care much for his father anymore. Yes, perhaps he had cared for him before he had been banished, but not now- all he had wanted was to go back home, which didn't necessarily had to include him. A father who banishes his own child? On some levels, he thought this was absurd, as he knew that a lot of fathers would not care if they _had _shamed him. He understood it as well, for a small part. He had spoken out of line that day and had deserved to be punished for that- he acknowledged that fact. Banishment was different though, for such a small thing…

Zuko shook his head and placed his hands under his head.

"_You should smile more often…"_

Even thinking about what he had said made Zuko smile. And those eyes… unlike what he was used to. Every little pain he had endured during his life seemed to fade away as he thought about those kind eyes of Sokka's.

Maybe that was caring for someone? To be kind to them, support them, give them advice, correcting them when they are wrong… but those are simply actions, not feelings. Then how do you know if you feel affection for someone? Jealousy, possessiveness(1)? He didn't understand.

"…_you look much better when you do."_

Warmth, curiosity, attraction(2)? He didn't know. Would he ever know? As far as he knew, he had never been interested in a woman- he didn't have the time. He had never felt love towards anyone, though perhaps his uncle was very close to it. Maybe he did love his uncle? After all, he had always felt like the old man was more of a father to him… He had always been the one to stick with him through all of his tantrums, praising him for something, making him feel like he's worth something, on the contrary of how his father had acted towards him, only having eyes for his sister and banishing him without blinking his eyes.

No, his real father was nothing to him anymore. Maybe that's why he could so easily betray him and join with the Avatar.

He snorted to himself- his father had wanted to test his loyalty and gave him a mission and now Zuko was doing the exact opposite of what he had intended. He supposed that was what people called ironic.

He cast a sideward glance to Sokka, who was breathing softly, occasionally letting out a loud snore- again with the frown on his face. Zuko wondered vaguely what the boy was dreaming about, before said boy started trashing, mumbling something soft Zuko could not hear. The mumbling got a bit louder, before it turned into yelling. The prince sat up straight to look at him.

"Stop!" he could hear. "Don't touch me, stop it!" Zuko froze. What was he supposed to do? Wake him up? Let him sleep until he wakes up himself? The yelling got even worse and, though the room was hardly lit, he could vaguely see tears glistening in the light. Zuko figured he needed to do something- if only for his sake. After all, how could he sleep when Sokka was thrashing like a madman?

At least, that's what he kept telling himself as he walked towards the boy.

"Sokka, wake up," he, almost gently, shook him by the shoulder, but it was no good- the boy was only panicking more. Okay, so that method didn't work. What else could he do?

He started to think back on his childhood, remembering the days when he had nightmares as well. He hardly at them now, but they were still there, though not as bad as at that time. He had always found himself waking up in the arms of one of the female servants, who was gently rubbing his back and head as comfort, whispering soft words to him. Though it seemed a bit… weird to do that to another boy, was that the only option? Probably. Waking him up certainly didn't have any effect- he only felt more threatened by that. If he had a feeling of… safety… perhaps that would work?

Deciding it to be the best method, Zuko stood up and sat down besides the trashing boy and struggled a bit with lifting him up and gently holding him, his head pressed against the prince's chest and Zuko's hands rubbing his back gently.

"It's alright Sokka," Zuko said, a bit awkwardly. He wasn't used to… well, _this_, whatever it was that he was doing. Maybe it was just his instinct or something, but it certainly did seem to help. After a while, Sokka stopped trashing and yelling and became still, his body curled up against Zuko's, apparently trying to get away from the world and all of its hardships. His hands were holding the cloth of Zuko's shirt tightly, almost clutching him and because of this, the prince could not go away… even if he wanted to.

Touching Sokka was strangely… enjoyable, he found out.

And he also found out that he didn't care if Sokka was a man or not. Figuring it to be impossible to break free from the tight hold the boy had on him, he gently lifted Sokka a bit so he could get under him and lied down in his bed, the tribesman on top of him. Zuko fell asleep almost immediately.

--

_-gasp- Zuko and Sokka fluff :3. Though Sokka doesn't realise it, of course… and Zuko still thinks it's a friendship thing. Hehe. xD _

_(1)In case I don't make myself clear with this; Zuko has no idea what caring for each other loving someone means, so he tries to figure out the different emotions that come with love and caring and… yer o.o_

_(2) Same as 1, again, he tries to sort out some emotions xD _


	4. Remind Me

**Remind Me**

_It was a clear sky; the moon giving an amazing light, stars surrounding it. Not a sound could be heard in the forest, except for some birds who only come out during the night. Sokka was guarding their camp, occasionally yawning due to the fact that he had absolutely nothing to do, except maybe swim some more in the river nearby. Though, if Katara knew he was going to do that, she'd flip out. _

… _That never stopped him though. _

_Standing up from the log he was sitting on, he stretched and quickly undressed himself, with the exception of his pants. He didn't mind swimming in the nude, but if something happened and he needed to fight, he'd rather have his pants on. He sighed as he jumped in the river, splashing and feeling immediately refreshed by the cool water. _

_He stayed there, sometimes flopping on his back to look at the stars, until the sun started to rise, completely forgetting about his task of watching the camp. _

"_Sokka!" A voice suddenly cried, disturbing the peace, from further into the forest- he saw Appa rising, with Aang on his head and Katara on his back. They were searching for him, glancing around deeper into the forest. Sokka waved and yelled, not knowing what else to do, but they couldn't see him- they turned around and went into the exact opposite way of where he was. Then, he saw flames rising from the forest, firing at the flying bison, who avoided them easily. _

_Firebenders. _

_Sokka panicked and immediately went out of the water, running as fast as he could. He needed to get away from there- he'd meet up with Aang and Katara later on, he was sure of that. He just needed to flee from the Fire Nation for the time being. _

_After running for a couple of seconds, fire was being shot at him. He dodged several shots, still running away, until he bumped into a very tall and muscular man, who immediately held him still. _

"_Well, well, what have we here?" _

--

The tribesman woke up, shocked and confused as to where he was. Again that dream? It was the same almost every day- he dreamed about his 'adventures' for the past month, ever since he had been 'bought' by Zuko.

Speaking of Zuko, why was he lying underneath Sokka? And why were his arms around him?

"AH!" Sokka yelled and jumped off the bed, falling on the floor in the process. Because of all the noise, Zuko woke up as well, blinking lazily and looking down at the boy on the floor, who was gaping at him and pointing his finger in his direction.

"You better have a good excuse for waking me up," Zuko said dryly, rubbing his head as he was ready to fall back asleep again. Sokka still looked at him, his mouth hanging open. "And close that mouth, I can see what you ate yesterday." Sokka immediately closed his mouth, standing up and rubbing his head.

"Wh-You-THE HELL?" He finally roared. Zuko just blinked at him.

"Get back to bed, you idiot. You were having a nightmare and you wouldn't wake up- this was the only other option. Now get back into bed or I'll strap you down myself." Sokka blinked once, wondering if he should get back into bed with him. On the one hand, it was freaky- he didn't even lie in the same bed with Katara, who was his own sister. On the other hand, it was rather tempting. He hadn't slept that well in a very long time and the warmth radiating from the other's body had been… nice. "Good boy," Zuko said, as Sokka came back to him and lied down next to him, very close to his own body. Sokka stuck out his tongue at him.

"I'm not your dog, bastard," he said.

"No, but you are my slave," Zuko grinned and pulled the other one closer to him. Sokka blinked and blushed slightly at the feeling of an arm around his waist.

"I think you're beginning to turn into a pervert," Sokka muttered slightly, before closing his eyes. He was completely pushed against Zuko's chest. It was as if his arms were having a mind of their own, as they held Zuko in return. Sokka felt drowsy; the heat radiating from his friend's body and the soft and steady beat of Zuko's heart. The prince chuckled at his remark, moving slightly as he did so.

Sokka fell asleep immediately, lost in warmth, comfort and safety.

--

This went on for another week. Every night, Sokka had a nightmare and every night, Zuko would come and lie in his bed, his arms around the others waist in an attempt to make him feel safe. They both enjoyed it very much- the warmth, the comfort. And even though they would never admit it- they practically relied on each other.

Slowly but surely, Zuko started to feel warm whenever he even saw the boy. He felt jealous whenever some other man on the ship made him laugh, or whenever someone else was able to touch him and Zuko found himself thinking about the Avatar less and less. It was weird and incomprehensible for the young prince- he hated not understanding things, but this was probably the biggest mystery to him yet.

He had never had friends. And he felt as if he and Sokka were closer than that, however weird that might sound, but they were more than simply friends. And he liked it, the way Sokka subdued himself to the prince, whenever he would simply hold him close to him. It gave him a feeling of dominance and something else, which he couldn't identify. Maybe it was possessiveness, the way Zuko would swing his arm around him whenever someone else was talking to him. Or perhaps it was protectiveness for him- he didn't want anybody to hurt the boy anymore.

But Sokka still hadn't told him what exactly had happened to him at… the place. And Zuko wanted to know- he wanted the boy to open up to him and he wanted to know who the man was who had borrowed him for the night so he could hunt him down and kill him for ever touching the boy.

And so, he found himself yet again, rubbing the boy next to him softly on his back, wiping a strand of hair out of his tanned face and just comforting him with his presence. Sokka was breathing heavily, still in shock of his dream, still afraid and still panicked about it. Zuko sighed; even though he didn't mind doing this for his friend, he still thought this should stop.

"Sokka, do you want to talk about it?" he asked, almost gently. The tribesman shook his head heavily, clutching Zuko's shirt even tighter. "It might help you get over this. You can't keep everything inside- you know when I get mad, I always vent it out on someone or something and it helps. Just… talk to me about it." Sokka was silent for a moment. "You're not ashamed for it, are you?" Zuko then asked, suddenly it dawned on him- Sokka was scared, ashamed for it. The tribesman nodded silently and Zuko sat up straight. "It's not your fault that it happened to you, _you _shouldn't be ashamed for it, but those men _do_." It was silent for a while, before Sokka started to speak softly.

"I… didn't realise it at first, that I actually was a slave and that… people could do things to me, just like that. I mean, they told me, but I just didn't want to know, I guess. Not until one of the guards came into my cell, it was then that it… that I realised it was all for real," Zuko had lied back down again, holding the boy against him as he spoke. The words were tentative at first, as if to try out if it really worked, but then he started to speak a bit more louder so Zuko could hear it. "He locked it and he hit me and… well, I think you know what he did," he continued, an awkward grin on his face as he said the last words. "An hour later, these other men came. One was pretty big and he said that he had interest in me. He took me to his home, I think, well, it was pretty big and he seemed to be very rich. He started to hit me too, when I tried to escape, so I bit him when he held his hand in front of my mouth. That only made it worse though," he added with a soft and insecure chuckle. He could see smoke coming out of Zuko's nose and he liked the fact that it made the prince angry, angry for him… he quickly dismissed the thought and shrugged- it probably didn't mean anything and he didn't want it to mean anything. "Well, he did the same as the guard after that. He hit me some more, on my back, my arms… he had a belt, I remember and used that on me too. I passed out after that and then I woke up here."

"How did you get caught anyway? Didn't the Avatar protect you?" Zuko asked him, trying to control his temper. Bastards- if he ever would find the name of the guy who had taken Sokka, he'd definitely hunt him down.

"Well, I don't really remember. I think I sometimes dream about it, but I can't be sure if that really happened. In my dream, I was awake at night and they were sleeping- I was bored, so I went swimming in a river only a couple of metres further away. After a while, I heard them yelling my name and I saw Appa- you know, the flying bison- lift up and flames trying to hit them. I yelled, but they didn't hear me, so I got caught by Firebenders." Zuko nodded. "Some parts seem familiar, so I think that that's what happened."

"Bastards," Zuko ground out, through gritted teeth. Sokka flicked him on the head.

"Don't call my friends bastards, bastard," he said, jokingly. Zuko smacked him back in return- though his friend was already laughing again, he couldn't see the humour in this.

"Are you… alright?" Zuko asked finally, hesitantly. Sokka's eyes immediately darkened.

"I am, I guess. But…" Zuko could faintly see tears in his eyes, all trace of the smile he wore mere seconds ago gone. "How will I ever tell Katara? Or Aang? How can I ever return to my village?" Zuko told himself in his mind, that he could never return, since he was a slave anyway, but decided to keep that thought to himself. Sure, he could let the boy go… but that meant that Sokka would leave him. Zuko didn't want that to happen.

"Like I said, you have nothing to be embarrassed about. Well, except for the horrid smell," Zuko said, teasingly. Sokka just smacked him again, but grinned back- he was slightly stunned when Zuko wiped away a tear with his thumb, though soon leaned into the soft touch, his eyes closing and drowsiness taking him over. "Now, I order you to go to sleep, peasant," Zuko said, in a tone which made the 'peasant' laugh. There wasn't a hint of malice in that tone, just teasing.

"Yes, your royal Pain in the Ass," he replied, sleep overtaking him.

_AN: Ok, short chapter, but I thought it was a good point to stop o.o. Nyah, review if you will :3 xD _


	5. What The Hell?

_AN: Thank you for the reviews :3 I hope you enjoy this chapter! … And don't mind the title XDDD_

**Chapter 5: What The Hell?**

"Prince Zuko, we have some information concerning the Avatar's whereabouts," one of the crewmembers told him, as Zuko was concentrating on a map. He nodded, an indication for the man to continue. "He's currently heading to the West, in a village not so far from here. He has been residing there for three days now, according to an old man I talked to earlier. I suggest we walk there- it will take us three hours if we do."

"Very well. Make a party of about ten soldiers and be sure to be ready in an hour. We'll leave immediately." Zuko dismissed the man and concentrated on the map again, occasionally glancing towards the boy standing on the other side of the deck, practising with his boomerang. Lately, he found it hard to concentrate on the work, especially when his friend was around and it was rather annoying him. He'd sometimes even send Sokka out of his sight, so he could finally get some work or training done, even though he felt emptiness when the tribesman wasn't around and, of course, guiltiness as he usually sent him away rather briskly.

"Sokka," he called out to the boy, who immediately came jogging towards him, panting slightly because of the exercise. "We know where the Avatar is and we'll be leaving in one hour. Be ready for that time, we'll need you with us to convince him that we don't intend any harm." Sokka looked surprised.

"Really? You found him?" Zuko nodded. "Zuko…" he started, looking hesitant. He knew this moment would come- facing his sister and Aang. And he knew that they would never agree with Zuko's offer to join them; not unless the prince would release Sokka. The tribesman knew Zuko would never agree to that and there was a small part of Sokka that didn't want to leave the prince and the ship.

"What is it Sokka?" he asked, not looking up from the map.

"I think it's better if I stayed here," he finally said, looking away from Zuko's face. Zuko looked up, a questioning look on his face. "You really think it's smart to talk about peace with Aang and my sister when you bought me to serve you from an Earth Nation slavehouse? First of all, they won't trust you. Secondly, they'd only talk about peace if you'd release me. I know my sister, she won't let you off the hook that fast." Zuko looked thoughtful for a while, making Sokka wonder if he was even thinking about what he had said. Then again, Zuko usually took his time thinking things through (whenever he wasn't angry, because then he would act on impulse), so Sokka waited patiently for him to answer.

"I have decided," he said finally, making Sokka blink. Decided on what? "I'll let you free. You're not a slave anymore."

Zuko, of course, reluctantly said this. However, he had been thinking about it a lot- releasing him. What kind of friendship did he have with Sokka, if said friend was a slave? And, if Sokka really was his friend, he'd stay with Zuko. The prince was scared of course, scared that he'd leave him, but he didn't dare to think about that… he'd just have to accept that, if it was Sokka's decision.

And Sokka had a point- if he wanted to agree with the Avatar and offer him peace, then he needed to let Sokka go anyway, so it was either now, with his own will, or later, the Avatar pushing him to do so. He rather did it on his own, because it would mean more to Sokka and himself if he would let him go like that.

"Wh-what?" Sokka stammered. He hadn't expected that.

"You're welcome to stay here with me, but I hereby release you. You're free to leave or stay," Zuko said. He hoped on the latter, of course.

"I-I… thanks," Sokka replied, not exactly knowing what to say to it. "I don't know… if I'll stay. I'd have to think about it." Zuko felt a rock dropping in his stomach, but nodded reluctantly. "Unless…" Sokka blushed slightly, scratching his neck. "You want me to stay? I mean, I wouldn't mind. I like it here," he mumbled. Zuko blinked at him, his heart immediately skipping a beat.

He was glad… he just needed to say a couple of words and Sokka would stay with him. He wouldn't leave him, he wouldn't go away- it was at that point that Zuko realised how nervous he was of the tribesman's answer.

Did he need him to stay? Probably. Zuko shrugged quickly, dismissing the thought and focusing on the boy instead.

"Think about it before you say anything, you have four hours," he said to him, not missing the obvious disappointment in his eyes. "But, I'd really like it if you stayed." With that, Zuko quickly left the deck, leaving a still very confused Sokka.

Arriving in his room, Zuko quickly flopped on Sokka's bed- a habit he had picked up over the couple of months they had spent together. He now slept in the same bed as Sokka, always ate together with him, trained with him and even in his dreams, Sokka would keep him company. Was this how friends felt towards each other? He couldn't imagine that. What were they exactly?

He wanted to know that- he wanted to understand.

There was physical attraction between the two. Zuko often found himself watching him from the corner of his eyes or just stare at his body, his muscles, his face, his eyes… whatever glimpse he could get. Besides that, he liked his conversations, he liked his sense of humour, he liked to sleep in the same bed with him and hold him. He liked to touch his face, arms or back and he found that he wanted to always hold him and that he didn't want anyone else to get near him.

Could it be that he was in love with him?

He had heard many stories about love and being in love with someone, though they were never about a man and a man. He heard several of his crewmembers talking about it though and it was generally accepted by the people, even if it was still weird.

Was there love between the both of them?

He had heard some things about the 'effects' of being in love and he decided to go through them one by one. The most important one of them all, was constantly thinking about that person. In his case, it was true- he definitely couldn't keep his mind off of Sokka. Every second he was awake, he would think about him and even in his sleep, he'd still be in his dreams. It was annoying, because he couldn't concentrate properly anymore, but it was strangely enjoyable at the same time. It was hard to explain it.

He also never wanted Sokka to have a… girlfriend. Or something. He wanted to tear everybody who had ever touched the boy apart and throw them in the ocean so they could never come near him again- so, he was possessive of him. But was that really love?

… He'd just have to find out.

--

"Prince Zuko, we're ready to go," a member of his crew told him, as he was still lying on his bed thinking about a certain tribesman. Zuko immediately stood up and dismissed him, quickly getting his helmet and hurrying to the deck. He saw Sokka already standing there- he had a white shirt on him, sleeveless, and a pair of very baggy kaki pants. They would easily drop off his hips, had it not been for the belt.

"Sokka, before we go, I'd like to talk to you for a minute," Zuko said, motioning Sokka to come with him. They didn't stop far away from the rest of the party which would go to find the Avatar, but far enough so they couldn't hear them. "I'd like to test something."

"Really? What?" The other asked, confused. Test something?

"Yes, just stay still for a minute or so," Zuko replied, inching closer to his face. Sokka swallowed slowly, wondering what it was that the slightly taller boy was going to do. "Don't pull away," he breathed, closing the gap between the both of them and kissing Sokka full on the mouth.

For a minute or so, the tribesman simply froze. Literally. He couldn't move at all- he was in shock. It was supposed to feel wrong, but slowly, as Sokka started to get used to the feeling of his lips pressed against his, it started to feel completely _right _and he wanted more of that. As if they had a mind of their own, his hands found their way to the back of Zuko's head and pulled him closer, his mouth slowly beginning to move against the prince's. He felt Zuko smirk and couldn't help but grin back at him in the kiss.

And then, suddenly, Zuko's lips were gone and Sokka felt a certain emptiness inside of him.

"Thank you. It's all clear to me now," Zuko said and walked away, towards the very stunned crew standing on deck, all gaping at the sudden display of affection between the two boys. Only Iroh grinned. "I don't want to hear anything from you, uncle," Zuko said as he passed him.

"Why, dear nephew, I would never," Iroh replied innocently. "Just make sure he follows us, I think he can't move right now." Zuko turned towards the still stunned Sokka.

"Sokka, get over here, or I'll carry you myself!" he called to him. Iroh snickered softly to himself as Sokka hurried over and followed Zuko, still a weird look on his face and a hint of pink on his cheeks.

"You gave us quite the show there Sokka," Iroh said, chuckling as the tribesman's face turned a deeper shade of red.

"S-shut up!" he quickly said and scurried over to one of the people he knew, who slapped him on his back and laughed loudly as Sokka smacked him on the head. Iroh watched as Zuko immediately pulled the tribesman away from the man and how he snaked his arm around Sokka's waist. He heard Sokka saying something along the lines of 'pervert! Get your arm away from me!', obviously still embaressed about before, and he inched away from Zuko.

Ah, love. Isn't it wonderful?

--

"Pervert! Stop harassing me!" Sokka smacked Zuko's arm away for the hundredth time when they had started to walk. Zuko just smirked at him and pulled Sokka closer.

"That's no way to talk to your boyfriend," he replied, swinging his arm over the tribesman's shoulders and pulling him against his chest.

"You are not my boyfriend!" he hissed. How the hell had he gotten himself into this mess? Oh yeah. He allowed Zuko to kiss him.

Well, not that this was all bad, the attention, affection, the touching, but it was just so… weird, especially doing it in public. They had slept together, hugging each other in the bed, arms around each other's waists… but this was so different than all of that. Zuko had _kissed _him and now he was calling himself Sokka's _boyfriend_. It was just too confusing for him. So, therefore, he kept pulling himself out of Zuko's annoying grasp and tried to get away from him and mingle with the crewmembers.

Zuko always pulled him away though.

"We're here," Zuko said, finally letting go of Sokka, to his relief. The village they had arrived in was very small- at the most, there were seven houses standing there, without any stores to buy food. These people probably had to travel to a bigger city in the neighbourhood to get their food, clothes and other supplies. Sokka looked around and saw few people on the only street, looking frightened at the Fire Nation soldier's, especially at Zuko, who always looked as if he could murder someone.

With the exception of Sokka of course- Zuko always looked at Sokka as if he could jump him any second. Sokka shuddered at the thought.

For a moment, Sokka had no idea what to do next- wait until Aang would show up? Ask some-

"You there, peasant, tell me where the Avatar is," Zuko said briskly to one of the elderly men on the street. The man blinked once, before he narrowed his eyes. Sokka gave him a smack on the head. "Ouch! What was that for?" the prince hissed at him.

"You don't ask people for things like that!" Sokka hissed back. "Excuse me sir!" the tribesman said then, ignoring Zuko who was rubbing his head in annoyance. "Do you know where the Avatar is? I have to talk to him."

"S-Sokka?" A familiar voice piped up from one of the houses. Zuko crossed his arms as he saw the girl- Sokka's sister- walk towards them, an angry look on her face. "Let him go now!" she yelled, clearly directed at the prince, getting out some water from the flask she always carried with her.

"Katara, wait!" Sokka yelled at her- he knew this would happen. Zuko raised an eyebrow at the display and swung an arm around his shoulders- Sokka was too busy to notice anyway… much to the pleasure of Zuko. "Where's Aang?" Katara blinked.

"He's… washing Appa," she replied, looking at Zuko and Sokka, who didn't seem to want to be released. "What's going on here?" she finally demanded. She watched how her brother smacked the arm of Zuko away, before he walked up to her and gave her a hug.

"Don't worry," he grinned. "Zuko's not after Aang anymore. I'll explain everything when we find him, 'kay?" Katara nodded silently, still too confused about what was happening.


	6. Love Me

**Chapter 6: Love Me**

It didn't take them long before they found Aang and Appa, playing in the river close to the village. However, it did take them a long time to explain everything to the young Avatar and Katara, so that they would understand that Zuko was no longer after him.

Zuko noticed that Sokka had decided to leave out some things, like his little adventure in the slavehouse and how Zuko had bought him there. He couldn't really blame him; though Zuko had no idea what Sokka had to go through, he knew it would be hard to actually talk to them about it. After all, it had taken Zuko himself quite some time before he could get it out of the young tribesman.

Katara and Aang looked at each other briefly, hesitance flickering in their eyes. Sokka knew for sure they'd be interested in the offer- after all, it would all be a lot easier for everyone if they would team up with Zuko; they wouldn't be followed anymore and there wouldn't be any danger for the villages they would visit anymore. Aang wouldn't want anybody getting hurt because of him and it could be prevented with this way.

"I can't see why not," Aang finally said. "But, Sokka, are you sure we can trust them?" He turned to the tribesman, who had been busy prying Zuko's arm off of him- he didn't want the prince to act that way around his friends, since they were both giving them weird looks.

"I'm sure," Sokka said, nodding his head. He trusted Zuko- for some kind of twisted way he trusted him. If someone had told him about that three months before, he would've laughed and asked if Appa had fallen on top of him. Katara nodded in response, still too dazed about everything that had happened.

Especially still too dazed about her brother and… _Zuko._ Aang simply giggled about the display: Zuko often snaked an arm around Sokka, only to get Sokka annoyed. The tribesman would then smack the arm away, only to get Zuko annoyed in return- this was definitely odd, but also very entertaining for the Avatar.

"Sokka… you still haven't told us everything that has been going on, right?" Katara finally asked, her blue eyes looking intently at the prince, who glared at her in return. Sokka immediately blushed. "What's going on between you and _him_?" Zuko didn't like the way Katara spat out the word 'him', but he let it slide.

Sokka also didn't really like it, though he understood it. Their mother had been killed by the Fire Nation, so they hated most Fire benders with a passion, Sokka would've reacted the same way as Katara, had she been the one who ended up with Zuko constantly pulling her closer (he shuddered at the thought). However, Sokka knew other parts of Zuko and he knew that he wasn't like the cruel soldiers who had killed his mother; he was definitely different.

"If you must know," Zuko finally said, pulling the slightly smaller boy closer to him. "Sokka and I will be getting married soon."

Silence.

Sokka blinked. Katara blinked. Aang blinked. Momo blinked.

"_WHAT!_" Surprisingly enough (not), it was Sokka who was first to speak, or rather, bellow. "What do you mean, we're getting married! You can't decide stuff like that on your own!" Zuko smirked at him, lowering his face to Sokka's and brushing their lips slightly, causing the tribesman to flush slightly.

"Are you saying you don't _want _to stay with me?" Zuko whispered, almost seductively to Sokka, who was slightly mesmerized by the way the other boy touched his body. The only coherent thought that was going through his mind was that Zuko felt very warm… he could bathe in that heat forever.

He quickly pinched himself.

"No! You pervert! Don't _I_ get any say in this?"

"No."

"I should!"

"But you don't. You're staying with me." Sokka groaned in irritation.

"What happened to the whole 'you're free to stay or leave'-thing?" He asked.

"It's different now," Zuko said indignantly, pulling Sokka closer to him. Katara and Aang were still looking at the display, both confused, though Aang seemed to enjoy it as well. "Of course, you'll be treated like a king as well and we'll have to find a way for you to bare children, but I think we have a method for doing that. I'd have to look into that," he continued, missing the stares he was getting from Sokka, Katara and Aang.

"I have to _WHAT!_" Sokka exploded again. "That's it! We have to talk about this. Right. Now!" He grabbed Zuko's hand and started to drag him towards the forest so they could both get some privacy.

"What is it?" Zuko asked, annoyed, again trying to snake his arms around his waists and succeeding in doing so. Sokka was immediately lost in his warmth, the comfort and the feeling of safety… it just felt right, to be with him like that, even though he had kept telling himself it didn't feel like that. "Oh, I see, you want to try having children right now," Zuko said, a smug look on his face. Sokka smacked him on the head and reluctantly released himself from Zuko's grasp.

"Just, wait a moment with all of your perverted thoughts!" Sokka finally exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air. "And no-" he quickly continued as Zuko was about to reply that. "Don't say anything! Just, what are we now? Because I'm confused and I hate being confused!" Zuko's smirk disappeared and it was replaced with a look of seriousness. "Am I just some toy for you to play with?" Sokka then growled angrily… he didn't want to be used anymore. He wanted Zuko to be clear.

"I meant what I said," Zuko said in all earnest. "I'd really like us to be… together," he added. The prince wasn't too good in expressing his feelings, so Sokka had to take that as an answer to his question. Before Sokka could answer him, however, Zuko had already pulled him closer and pressed his lips on Sokka's- something he was intent on doing more often.

It took the tribesman's mind a couple of seconds to register what was going on, but then he started to move his lips against Zuko's, opening his mouth slightly so the prince could enter with his tongue. Zuko immediately took the invitation and started to explore his mouth, taking in every feeling he got from being with the boy and savouring it.

Sokka's arms wrapped themselves around his neck, to deepen the kiss some more and in return, Zuko's hands went under Sokka's shirt, exploring the toned chest with interest. However, this didn't last very long, since they both needed to part for breath- they looked at each other for a moment, Sokka still lost in the warmth of the other's body.

"So, is everything clear?" Zuko asked.

"No, not yet," Sokka answered truthfully, though grinning at the other playfully and this time, it was Sokka who quickly kissed the prince on the lips, before they both went back to Aang and Katara.

Sokka couldn't help but grin like an idiot all through their discussion.

--

**Epilogue**

"Zuko! You bastard, get over here and face your punishment!" A loud voice bellowed. Zuko obediently sprinted towards the man who had called him.

It had been five years since the Avatar and Prince Zuko had teamed up. The Avatar had saved the world, as was predicted, and had overthrown the Fire Nation's king, together with Zuko himself. He took great pride in knowing that, without his help, the Avatar would have never succeeded in doing so.

Aang had gone back to his former temple, planning on restoring it completely and try to teach Air bending to others who had the talent for it- he already had a lot of children under him, who didn't have any parents and who had a natural talent for Air bending. He often visited Sokka and Katara, together with Appa and Momo.

Katara had decided to go back to the North Pole to learn everything she could about Water bending. She had become a great master and was teaching the South Water Tribe how to bend as well- she even managed to teach Sokka some basic moves, which was quite the accomplishment.

And as for Sokka… he still lived with Zuko. He still found it hard to believe that he was actually married to the guy, because sometimes Zuko could be impossible. Not that Sokka was the easiest person to live with.

"What is it, Sokka?" Zuko came, grinning like a madman. Sokka just scowled at him. "Why, aren't you cold?"

"Zuko," the former tribesman growled at him warningly. Zuko's grin became even wider. "Give me back my clothes. Right. Now."

"Oh, I don't know Sokka, I think you look much more… appealing now," he replied. Sokka had gone swimming in the nude, since they had decided to spend a day together. Zuko was too busy with his duties as king and so had taken Sokka for a picnic in the forest nearby the fort they were currently residing in. He pulled the boy closer to him, their wet skin touching each other as Zuko pressed his lips on Sokka's, who happily returned the kiss, his former anger forgotten.

"You're overdressed," Sokka said and tugged on Zuko's pants. The prince smirked down at the slightly smaller boy and happily pulled them off and discarding them in the river. He really didn't care where his pants would end right now.

Zuko dived back in for a hungry kiss, while caressing Sokka's chest, shoulders, hips, neck, head… anything he could find. The water made soft and gentle sounds as their bodies moved in a steady pace, hips grinding, lips clashing against each other. They both moaned, groaned, panted, until they found their release and slumped against each other for support- their bodies sweating slightly, even though they were halfway in the water.

Zuko guided both of them to the shore and laid Sokka down on the sheet he had brought with him to have lunch. He lied down himself and pulled Sokka in a warm embrace, stroking his back gently and watching the trees sway softly, their branches rustling slightly. Sokka let out a sigh in content and wrapped his own arms around the prince's neck.

"Sokka?"

"Hm?"

"… When're we having kids?" Silence. Zuko covered his ears.

"HOW ABOUT NEVER!"

--

_AN: Gha, I'm sorry about the crappy ending T.T… But damn, I just didn't have any inspiration for this anymore and I had no idea how to end it OR continue it -.-… _

_And sorry about the crappy lemon, but I just couldn't get myself to write a good one. Gha. You can scold me if you want T.T Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed my short fic xD._

_Until next time :3_


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